Property owner has turned down a $100,000 check from the city

Not many people would leave a check for $100,000 with their name written on it sitting unclaimed, but that is exactly what Eleanor L. Jones, in a fight with the city of Cape Girardeau over eminent domain, is doing right now.

For more than a year, Jones has refused to let the city take over 2,160 square feet of graveled property facing Broadway in front of the two-story house she owns at 304 Park Ave. The gravel lot is used as parking space for the Future Fitness club, a business she owns on the opposite side of Broadway.

The city needs the property to begin the second phase of its Broadway widening project between Houck Place and Perry Avenue. The entire project will cost the city $2.1 million in transportation sales tax money.

What has transpired between Jones and city officials over the past year is either an affirmation of individual property rights or a cautionary tale of a rogue citizen's ability to hold a city hostage.

Jones, who is 89 years old, said she believed from the outset that the city was not dealing fairly with her.

Jones spoke with this newspaper but has since declined to be quoted directly in this article.

She said no one can force her to sign the check or accept the city's offer. She also believes she is being taken advantage of because of her age and claims to be planning a lawsuit against the city.

The city of Cape Girardeau is not too wild about Jones either. The city's Planning Services Division initially offered Jones $12,000 for the lot, a figure determined by Bill Dockins of Dockins Valuation. Jones did not accept the offer, forcing workers to halt construction on Broadway westbound directly in front of her house.

City hall responded by commencing condemnation proceedings, and three court-appointed commissioners were hired to determine the value of the property.

In November, the commissioners came back with their assessment of value of the gravel lot: $100,000, an $88,000 increase from the initial appraisal.

"We were pretty shocked," said planner Martha Brown. "We felt the total they arrived at was significantly higher than the value of the property."

Dockins, the certified general real-estate appraiser who gave the first valuation, called the commissioners' assessment "ridiculous."

"I took into account that this is a rental property, not a property that the owner occupies, so having the street a little closer will not affect the owner drastically because the renters are primarily college students," he said. "Based on that, I just assessed what the land is actually worth. The other folks took a lot more pity on Ms. Jones than I could as a professional appraiser."

But one of the commissioners, Bill Stanfield, said the initial estimate did not take everything into account. "[The plan for widening] eliminated parking in front of the business. We went through several scenarios and came up with the figure we came up with," he said. "It really destroyed that property. She'd probably be better off without a building there now. If I were her I'd be inclined just to tear the building down it's deteriorated in value so much."

Fellow commissioner Thomas L. Meyer, agreed. "I've been doing condemnation work for over 40 years," he said. "You've got to take into consideration the before-and-after value of a property in order to figure out what the loss is; part of the loss is lost usage, and with no parking she loses income on that forever, for all eternity. She'll never get fair market rental on that property."

So the city reluctantly agreed to pay the money to the court and took possession of Jones' property. But to date, Jones has refused to claim the check for $100,000 made out to her.

Her attorney, Al Lowes, said he has counseled Jones to claim her money or reach a settlement with the city. "I don't know," he said. "Some people they want the sun, the moon and the stars. I don't know where this goes from here."

Although the money offered by the city is tempting, Lowes said, Jones might not end up keeping the lump sum. He said the city has already filed an appeal of the condemnation figure, and the dispute will likely go to a jury trial. A new trial will require further legal representation for Jones. Should the jury award her a different amount, she may be forced to give back a significant portion of the $100,000.

The city has already paid out money to property holders to the north and to the east of Hardee's restaurant on Broadway. It acquired the house at 1310 Broadway for $145,000 and the house at 506 N. West End Boulevard for $121,000.

City Engineer Jay Stencel just hopes the whole thing can be resolved quickly so his office can continue the road improvement scheduled to start in late summer or early fall.

"You can see where we stopped. We actually put barricades up," said Stencel. "You can see where it changes from a nicely asphalted road to the old pavement. We did not construct that section along her property. Hopefully negotiations will be completed, but that section should have been completed much earlier."

tgreaney@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 245